Saturday, October 28
Austin, Texas
10 a.m.
Kansas State University
vs
Big 12 Championships
K-State Remains Poised for Big 12 Championship on Saturday
Oct 25, 2017 | Cross Country
MANHATTAN, Kan. – After strong team performances throughout regular season competition, the Kansas State men's and women's cross country teams will compete at the Big 12 Championship meet, which will be held at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock, Texas on Saturday.
The men's race is slated to begin at 9 a.m. CT with an 8K race, followed by the women's 6K race at 10 a.m. CT. The top-15 finishers from both the men's and women's races will be considered and named to the All-Big 12 team.
The men's team is coming off a fifth-place performance at the Bradley Pink Classic on October 13, where they were led out by seniors Colton Donahue and Lukas Koch, who each placed in the top-15 overall. Throughout the season, the Wildcats have run successfully as a team by staying together in a pack. The pack-mentality has pushed the Wildcats, and earned them the No. 12 ranking in last week's USTFCCCA Midwest Regional Rankings, the best the team has placed in program history.
"Everybody has to show up and compete, and I think we are ready to compete," Head Coach Ryun Godfrey said of the men's team. "We can't control what other teams are going to do, so we have to stay focused and hopefully we can stay as packed up as we have been."
The Wildcat women will strive for success at the Big 12 Championship, after coming off a 13th place finish in a crowded field at the Bradley Pink Classic two weeks ago. This season has seen several impressive performances from the Wildcats, including four-straight top-30 finishes from senior Kayla Doll, and a personal best 21:54.1 from junior Emma Wren at the Bradley Pink Classic. The Wildcats have also had several underclassmen fill in and run competitively, including sophomore Sydney Collins and freshmen Erin Lee, Cara Melgares, Victoria Robinson and Kassidy Johnson.
"I want to see them go out and run their race," Godfrey said of the women's team. "I think they can go into the race and mix it up a bit and get some strong finishes."
The women's team earned a week four USTFCCCA Midwest Regional Ranking coming in at No. 9. The Wildcats will seek another strong showing at the Big 12 Championships on Saturday.
This will be the second consecutive Big 12 Championship held in the state of Texas, as last year the men's team placed eighth overall with a top finish of 26:34.5 from senior Bryan Zack, who finished 34th overall at the Texas Tech Cross Country Course in Lubbock, Texas. The women's team placed 10th at the meet, as they were led by Morgan Wedekind's 36th place finish in a time of 21:54.7.
Saturday's meet at Old Settlers Park marks the first time the Wildcats have raced at the course, as the team competed at the Jimmy Clay Golf Course in Austin, Texas at the 2012 Big 12 Championship. The men's team placed eighth overall at the 2012 Championship, and the women placed sixth overall behind the strength of Laura Galvan's 11th place finish.
The Big 12 Conference has partnered with Earl Miller Productions and FloSports to produce and live stream the 2017 Cross Country Championship on FloTrack. To access the live streaming coverage and post-event replays of the 2017 Big 12 Cross Country Championship, sign up to become a subscriber of FloTrack.com. For more information on streaming, the Big 12 meet schedule and more, click here.
Following Saturday's Big 12 Championship meet, the Wildcats will have an off week before traveling to Ames, Iowa to compete in the NCAA Midwest Regional on November 10.
For the latest on K-State cross country, follow @kstatesports and @KStateTFXC on Twitter using the hashtag #KStateXC or on the team's Facebook page.
The men's race is slated to begin at 9 a.m. CT with an 8K race, followed by the women's 6K race at 10 a.m. CT. The top-15 finishers from both the men's and women's races will be considered and named to the All-Big 12 team.
The men's team is coming off a fifth-place performance at the Bradley Pink Classic on October 13, where they were led out by seniors Colton Donahue and Lukas Koch, who each placed in the top-15 overall. Throughout the season, the Wildcats have run successfully as a team by staying together in a pack. The pack-mentality has pushed the Wildcats, and earned them the No. 12 ranking in last week's USTFCCCA Midwest Regional Rankings, the best the team has placed in program history.
"Everybody has to show up and compete, and I think we are ready to compete," Head Coach Ryun Godfrey said of the men's team. "We can't control what other teams are going to do, so we have to stay focused and hopefully we can stay as packed up as we have been."
The Wildcat women will strive for success at the Big 12 Championship, after coming off a 13th place finish in a crowded field at the Bradley Pink Classic two weeks ago. This season has seen several impressive performances from the Wildcats, including four-straight top-30 finishes from senior Kayla Doll, and a personal best 21:54.1 from junior Emma Wren at the Bradley Pink Classic. The Wildcats have also had several underclassmen fill in and run competitively, including sophomore Sydney Collins and freshmen Erin Lee, Cara Melgares, Victoria Robinson and Kassidy Johnson.
"I want to see them go out and run their race," Godfrey said of the women's team. "I think they can go into the race and mix it up a bit and get some strong finishes."
The women's team earned a week four USTFCCCA Midwest Regional Ranking coming in at No. 9. The Wildcats will seek another strong showing at the Big 12 Championships on Saturday.
This will be the second consecutive Big 12 Championship held in the state of Texas, as last year the men's team placed eighth overall with a top finish of 26:34.5 from senior Bryan Zack, who finished 34th overall at the Texas Tech Cross Country Course in Lubbock, Texas. The women's team placed 10th at the meet, as they were led by Morgan Wedekind's 36th place finish in a time of 21:54.7.
Saturday's meet at Old Settlers Park marks the first time the Wildcats have raced at the course, as the team competed at the Jimmy Clay Golf Course in Austin, Texas at the 2012 Big 12 Championship. The men's team placed eighth overall at the 2012 Championship, and the women placed sixth overall behind the strength of Laura Galvan's 11th place finish.
The Big 12 Conference has partnered with Earl Miller Productions and FloSports to produce and live stream the 2017 Cross Country Championship on FloTrack. To access the live streaming coverage and post-event replays of the 2017 Big 12 Cross Country Championship, sign up to become a subscriber of FloTrack.com. For more information on streaming, the Big 12 meet schedule and more, click here.
Following Saturday's Big 12 Championship meet, the Wildcats will have an off week before traveling to Ames, Iowa to compete in the NCAA Midwest Regional on November 10.
For the latest on K-State cross country, follow @kstatesports and @KStateTFXC on Twitter using the hashtag #KStateXC or on the team's Facebook page.
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